Over the years a number of people have requested that I take their funeral. Joy Harrison was one of those people and so she died at the end of February this year it was natural that I would be involved. Therefore the journey to South Wales was made and I had the privilege of leading a thanksgiving service in the church in Ogmore-by-Sea evangelical church. Below is the transcript of the service held in memory of Joy.
Ogmore-by-Sea Evangelical Church
15th
March 2016
Welcome:
It
is with great sadness that we gather here today. Our purpose is to
celebrate the life of Evelyn Joy Harrison known affectionately as Joy
to most of us here. Joy was a much loved mother, grandmother,
relative, friend or neighbour. She sadly passed away in the early
hours of Saturday 27th
February 2016. Joy's death did not really come as a great shock due
to her having been unwell for quite some time but that makes this
none the less a sad occasion.
To
have known Joy was to respect her, the two came hand in hand. Our
purpose in this service is to celebrate Joy's life and to praise the
Lord Jesus Christ for all that He has done for her and through her.
Therefore we will be singing some of Joy's favourite songs of praise,
we will read a portion of the bible which over recent years had
become a vital part of her life. We will speak of her life and the
Saviour that she loved.
We begin by praying:
Prayer:
Sing:
The Lord's my Shepherd.
Psalm
121
I
lift up my eyes to the mountains – where does my help come from?
My
help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
He
will not let your foot slip – he who watches over you will not
slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber
nor sleep.
The
Lord watches over you – the Lord is your shade at your right
hand;
the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.
The
Lord will keep you from all harm – he will watch over your
life;
the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and
for evermore.
New
International Version
Sing:
I
know not why God's wondrous grace.
Tribute:
Word's of comfort in
difficult days:
I am grateful to Gary for his comprehensive notes on the life of Joy.
Gary has produced what he calls the “Seven ages of Mum” in which
he plots Joy's life from the beginning.
The
first age: A grand entrance.
It
all began on 17th
March 1930 when Evelyn Joy Lee was born to Percy and Annie Lee.
Percy
was a veteran of the Great War having fought with the Royal Engineers
in the trenches of the Western Front where he was shot in the stomach
at Armentieres, just south of Ypres by a German sniper in 1916. He
was subsequently discharged after a lengthy period of convalescence.
When
Joy was a baby the family moved to Highland Place, Coity, Bridgend
where she spent all of her childhood, and teenage years along with
sister Ina who was born a couple of years later.
The
second age: Growing up.
Joy
attended Pen-y-Bont school where she had a happy childhood and as you
can imagine she made many friends. There was one particular friend
Barbara who would be a lifelong friend to Joy. It was Barbara who
introduced Joy to her cousin Keith. Love soon blossomed and Joy and
Keith were married in the Spring of 1951 at Hope Church, Bridgend.
They began married life in Quarrella Road, Bridgend. Joy at the time
worked for one of the post-war Government Departments. Soon after
this they bought their first house in Garfield Avenue, Litchard where
they lived happily until 1962 when they bought a garage and house in
Exeter
Keith
steadily built up a good business with Joy helping him as accountant.
Their first child, Gary, came along in 1964.
The
third age: Emigrating.
They
lived happily in Exeter until after a short holiday to Canada to see
Barbara in 1966 when they decided to emigrate to London Ontario in
1967. Keith soon found work as a motor mechanic and Joy settled down
to life in Canada.
Family
life with Joy was always a lot of fun with many happenings on the
way. In their early days in Canada they took a trip by car across the
prairies and through the Rockies. Whilst in the Rockies Keith and
Joy had an amazing experience whilst standing outside of the car to
admire the view. They came face-to-face with a Grizzly Bear and just
made it back to the car with the bear in hot pursuit. You can just
imagine the conversation in the car for the next few miles.
On
another occasion whilst on the same trip Gary fell into a stream and
was almost swept away but was plucked out at the last moment by Joy
wading into the water. These are examples of what life was like in
the Harrison household. Joy loved to recount the stories of the past
all of which helps us to understand something of her character.
Whilst
in Canada Keith became very unwell, his sickness was attributed to
the extreme heat of the Canadian Summer but it later turned out to
be to be thyroid problems. For this reason Keith and Joy decided to
return to the UK. They moved to Dawlish for a short time in order for
Keith to recuperate. Upon Keith's recovery they bought the garage in
Ogmore-by-Sea in 1969. Gary started school and Robbie came along
shortly afterwards in 1970.
The
fourth age: Building the business.
Initially
the garage was a hut selling petrol but Keith slowly turned it into a
car sales business. Joy settled down to making home in the aptly
named The Nest where she looked after the garage accounts and raised
her family.
Gradually
the business built-up and in the late 1970’s Keith and Joy built
the garage complex at the bottom of Church Close with Kilworth built
as their living quarters. The business later became a Mazda franchise
in the 1980.
The
fifth age: Further developments.
Time
passed happily in Kilworth with Joy loyally discharging her role as
Mother, house-wife and accountant. Gary moved away in 1983 and the
car sales was changed to an antiques business in the late 1980’s.
Later
they sold Kilworth and converted part of the showroom into a home for
their semi-retirement.
The
sixth age: Community service and mixed emotions.
In
1990 Joy joined the
Ogmore and St Brides Community Council on which she served for 13 or
more years. She was an effective and much loved member of the local
council where she served as the Conservative party representative.
Joy's
greatest sadness came when Keith passed away in January 1992. The
antiques business was closed down and Joy began to learn how to live
without her soul partner. After a while she moved into77 Main Road
which she made into her home until she finally passed away.
In
March 2001 Joy became suddenly unwell with what she always referred
to as her mystery illness. The doctors and specialists were
completely confused as to what had caused her to so unwell. Within
just 12 hours she went into a coma and was on life support machines.
It was said of her condition that she had defeated science and logic.
But it was during this time when a number of her vital organs had
failed and death seemed to be imminent that spiritual life was born
in Joy. She had an encounter with the Lord that was real to her and
which dramatically changed her outlook on life. She had an encounter
with the Lord Jesus Christ who assured her that she would live
through the illness and she in turn committed her life to Him. After
this encounter Joy soon began to recover and was released from
hospital on the 11th
of September that year 7 months after first becoming unwell. During
this time we at the church were praying much for Joy but not knowing
what the Lord was doing in her life.
The
whole experience had a profound effect upon Joy who as soon as it was
possible came to church where she became a committed member of the
fellowship here. I remember Joy stopping me one Sunday evening as I
was walking to the evening service and asking if she could come
along. That is a question that every pastor loves to be asked. Joy
came along and it was obvious that something vital had happened to
her. We will return to this in a few moments.
Another
significant thing happened during this time. She was approached by
her long lost cousin Bob in Australia who was compiling his family
tree and wanted to visit to learn more about his family. This was the
beginning of a deep friendship; Bob and Joy spent many hours visiting
family and catching up on old times. Bob is greatly saddened that he
cannot be here today and has sent the following tribute:
In Memory of Evelyn Joy
Harrison
On
this lady’s life the sun has set
A
lady who suffered such pain
Her
passing now brings much regret
Whilst
fondest of memories remain
Her
family and friends both near and far
Now
grieve she has gone for ever
This
lady…mother…beloved grandma
Will
not be forgotten…never
Through
God’s good grace …Joy has gone
To
his garden for her to tend
Our
fondness and love for her live on
For
the joy she brought us has no end
Lovingly
remembered…Bob
The
seventh age: Moving on.
The
final stage began for Joy one sunny summer's morning in June last
year when as she went to see the plans for the Ogmore-by-Sea
community hall she fell and ended up in hospital. This was the start
of a long stay in hospital and eventually on to Picton Court for a
short time. Her health was steadily deteriorating until finally she
passed away peacefully at the age of 85 years just 3 weeks before her
86th
birthday.
For
Joy this was her final moving on! But for her there was a welcome in
heaven. Heaven was her confident hope which was sealed when on that
day in 2001 she met with the Lord Jesus. If you think back to the
second hymn that we sang. The words of the chorus are: “I know whom
I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I
committed unto Him against that day!” Those words are taken
directly from the writing of the Apostle Paul in 2 Timothy chapter 1:
For the Spirit God gave us does not make us
timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. So do not be
ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner.
Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of
God. He has saved us and called us to a holy life – not because of
anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This
grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but
it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Saviour, Christ
Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality
to light through the gospel. And of this gospel I was appointed a
herald and an apostle and a teacher. That is why I am suffering as I
am. Yet this is no cause for shame, because I know whom I have
believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have
entrusted to him until that day.
On that day whilst in a coma in her hospital
bed Joy committed her life to Jesus Christ. The gospel tells us that
her sin was forgiven and that she was then a new creation. That means
that the old life of self will was no more and a life dedicated to
the glory of God had begun. There is nobody who knew Joy that could
deny the difference that this made to her. I had the great pleasure
of being her pastor and her friend. She delighted myself and the
church with her enthusiasm for the bible, for worship and fellowship
with the church. She became a committed member of our little church
and was one of the most regular and loyal attenders where she was
loved and respected by all.
We all know that Joy was never a fading violet
she was always ready to question something that had been said or to
comment largely when appropriate. I loved it when she would stop me
whilst in free flow of a sermon to ask me to clarify a point.
But there is just one more thing that we learn
from the passage above, Paul says that faith in Jesus Christ has
destroyed death for the believer but yet here we are at the funeral
of Joy a follower of Jesus. What is that about, well it is all about
moving on. Remember the old song “This world is not my home I'm
just a passing through, my treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the
blue!” There is a bit of poetic licence there, the treasure for the
Christian is laid up beyond this life. The promise of scripture is
that for the Christian we move on from this life and in a moment of
time we are in heaven and present with the Lord.
On Saturday
27th
February 2016 Joy moved on from this life to eternal life where she
was met by her Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ who welcomed her into
heaven with these words: “Well done Joy you good and faithful
servant.”
This same welcome is available to all who like
Joy commit their life to Jesus.
I would like to bring comfort to all here who
are mourning today by telling you that our God in heaven knows just
what it is like for a loved one to die. It was God the Son who died
on the cross and the heart of His Father in heaven was broken. Just
as God knows what pain grief brings He will surely comfort any one of
us that comes to Him humbly seeking help and comfort. He is only a
prayer away.
We thank God
for the life of Joy, she was a faithful wife of Keith, loving mum of
Gary and Robbie. A doting grandmother 8 times over. She was a family
member, friend or neighbour to all of us, we miss her desperately but
we thank God for her having been part of our lives.
Earth
has been impoverished by Joy's death but heaven is very much
enriched!
Sing:
I
heard the voice of Jesus say.
Prayer:
